Mild Intraoperative Hypothermia during Surgery for Intracranial Aneurysm

Neurologic deficits are common after surgery for subarachnoid hemorrhage due to a ruptured intracranial aneurysm. In this study, the use of mild intraoperative hypothermia (target body temperature, 33°C) to prevent neurologic deficits after surgery had no protective effect. However, the patients enrolled in this study were at relatively low risk, and it is unclear whether intraoperative hypothermia may have benefits in higher-risk patients. In this study, the use of mild intraoperative hypothermia to prevent neurologic deficits after surgery had no protective effect in patients at relatively low risk. New neurologic deficits are common after intracranial vascular surgery and are due to factors such as brain retraction, vessel occlusion, and intraoperative hemorrhage. Thus, there have been many efforts to protect the brain from such insults. 1 – 6 The use of systemic hypothermia as a protective adjunct in neurosurgery was first reported in 1955 7 but was largely abandoned during the 1970s and 1980s. Interest in this approach was rekindled after the demonstration in the laboratory that the induction of mild hypothermia (a temperature of approximately 33 to 35°C) improved the outcome of ischemic and traumatic insults. 8 – 11 This finding coincided with . . .